The following background discussion includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
In operation, a participant or weightlifter in a bench press exercise moves the barbell with a weight limit selected to be at a value at which the participant can, at most, perform ten repetitions, or at most, the weight that can be pressed or lifted once or twice. The repetition count selected is a goal that the participant elects to accept based on his or her training objectives. With each session, the participant attempts to add more repetitions or weight to the barbell for the purpose of gradually increasing the threshold at which a predetermined muscle group of the participant is unable to support a further increase in the value of the weights being used. When a participant inadvertently increases the weight of the plates on the barbell to a point at which a loss of control of the barbell occurs, the result is an unexpected decent of the barbell toward the participants chest, neck or face with only chance guiding the trajectory.
Pushing the limits in this type of training results in the most progressive improvement in the strength of the particular muscle group involved. Consequently, regular bench pressing will expose an over aggressive weight lifter to the possibility of episodes in which the weight lifter is struck with a barbell on the region extending from his throat to his upper chest when an attempt to increase performance failed. The possibility of harm is reduced if a spotter; usually another participant, intervenes and provides assistance by catching the falling barbell and stopping its uncontrolled decent.
However, history has shown that weight lifters sometimes participate without the benefit of a spotter, and partially minimize the risk associated with a falling barbell and its assembled weights by using an apparatus designed to eliminate the need for a “spotter”, while at the same time, assisting the individual to reduce the possibility of injury or death following a loss of control.
In operation, a weightlifter in a bench press exercise, lifts the barbell with a selected weight limit, in witch the participant can perform his or her desired number of repetitions. Because of the Design of most weight benches, A human spotter is needed to assist the weightlifter in each and every repetition to insure that, if the weightlifter can not complete a repetition. The weightlifter is not pined crushed, injured or killed by the falling weights.
However history has shown that the danger of injury is present even with two or three human spotters hovering over the weightlifter for safety. Human reaction time is not always fast enough to stop the barbell from falling, crushing or killing the weightlifter. Use of a human spotter has been proven to be another unsafe way of protecting the weightlifter from serious or fatal injury.
Most people are unaware of this hazard, leaving a false sense of safety to the person performing a bench press using a human spotter. The need for a safer spotting method or protocol has led me to the development of the Pair of Spotter Arms innovation.